Conor is having a bad time. Bullied at school, suffering a recurrent nightmare, and trying to cope with his mother's progressive illness, he is visited at night by a monster tree-man from the yew tree in the local churchyard who tells him three stories, and expects the true story of Conor's nightmare in return.This film takes Conor's real-life problems - very real, and all centred around his mother's illness - and smashes them face-first into the fantasy figure of the tree monster and his stories, fearsome and compassionate at the same time. This may not sound terribly convincing, but it works extremely well.The story came from a writer who died of the cancer which inspired her story before she was able to write the book: the author who worked her idea into a (childrens) book has also written the screenplay, and the stories-within-the-story are animated in the style of the watercolour illustrations in the original book. And this is some of the most beautiful animation you will see anywhere. Coupled with the CGI tree-man, there are some exquisite visuals on show here, interwoven seamlessly with the rather shabbily picturesque locations.Felicity Jones is good as the stricken mother, Sigourney Weaver does a brilliant job as the unsympathetic grandmother rather gracelessly making plans to take care of Conor afterwards, while dealing with her daughter's imminent death, a death which Conor is having such difficulty facing. Liam Neeson as the voice of the monster is amazingly good, and Lewis McDougal as Conor is stunning.All of which contributes to the emotional impact of this film, which is brutal. There is no niceness about what happens here, but it is dealt with compassionately and kindly as well as painfully. I sat in the darkness weeping as Grandma and Conor finally find a way to meet each other in a car stopped at traffic lights, and also as the Monster finally rips the truth of Conor's nightmare out of him. And as for the photograph of Mum and her father...This film hurt like hell, and I loved it.

A Monster Calls: A boy suffers bullying at school, his mother is seriously ill, he doesn't get on with his grandmother. All of this forces him into a fantasy world where a Monster Tree (played by Liam Neeson) comes to life and tells him three tales. As well as the tree being CGI/Animatronics, the Monster's tales are played out in animation.A moving, coming of age film which also contains adult themes and no, Neeson's acting wasn't wooden. 8/10.

This movie is dark and beautifully made. the acting is great, and the effects are stunning. With other words, you should watch this movie if you like deep films with a message. This movie is probably not suitable for people who only like fun and lighthearted movies, as it is pretty dark. Some people might find it too depressing, but it is a really good film if you like these type of movies. This is coming-of-age drama that will stay in your memory.

In an imaginary world a monster comes to aid a kid to deal with his personal grief and makes him leave childhood behind.This moving story is deployed in a fairish atmosphere, which strongly reminded me of del Toro's "Pan's Labyrinth": a bitter pill to swallow but with a cleansing aftertaste. Rarely such a feeling of catharsis overwhelms the audience. Protagonist is a little child who must cope with his mother's terminal illness. A monster awakes, the two worlds come together and the kiddo is challenged to discover the seemingly horrible, yet human truth inside him. A definite must, just a word of caution, however: prepare some tissues, and make sure you are not barely making it through a depressive phase in life.